Industry News

Recent figures released by the Regional Universities Network show that between 2009 and 2012, offered places rose 19.2 per cent, 3.1 per cent above the national average.

Minister for Tertiary Education, Senator Chris Evans, attributed the boom to the Federal Government’s introduction of demand driven offerings and removal of placement caps.

"Our reforms have given record numbers of regional and rural Australians the opportunity of a university education,” Senator Evans said.

"Until now benefits associated with higher education have eluded many Australians, particularly regional and rural students.”

"Australia needs more skilled workers with graduate degrees and we cannot afford not to tap into the talent of regional students and quality regional universities.

"Expanding the number of graduates in Australia is an economic imperative. An elitist model of university education will consign Australia to second rate economic growth."

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has released its Taxation statistics 2009-10 report, providing a comprehensive statistical publication on tax in the country.

The highlights of the report include:

Canberra is set to roll out the country’s first free e-waste recycling service, allowing residents to dispose of their unwanted televisions and computers under a national scheme.

“This is the start of a nation-wide roll-out of services as part of an extremely exciting initiative under the Gillard Government’s landmark Product Stewardship legislation. Services like these will be rolled out across Australia, boosting television and computer recycling rates to 30 percent in 2012-13 and 80 per cent by 2021-22, providing a long-term solution to television and computer waste,” Minister for Sustainability Senator Don Farrell said.

“Televisions and computers contain valuable non-renewable resources, including gold and other precious metals, as well as hazardous materials including lead, bromine, mercury and zinc. By recycling them, we can recover useful materials and at the same time reduce health and environmental risks.”

From the middle of May, DHL Supply Chain will be providing the free, ongoing service for households and small businesses.

ACT Chief Minister Katy Gallagher said the implementation of the National Television and Computer Recycling Scheme was an example of Canberra continuing to lead the way in recycling and waste management.

The DHL Supply Chain services will begin on 15 May 2012 and will operate from the Mugga Lane and Mitchell Transfer Stations, which are open from 7.30am to 5pm, seven days a week.

The National Television and Computer Recycling Scheme is funded and implemented by the television and computer industry and regulated by the Australia Government under the Product Stewardship Act 2011 and the Product Stewardship (Televisions and Computers) Regulation 2011.

Further information on the scheme can be found atwww.environment.gov.au/settlements/waste/ewaste/index.html

Over 180 business leaders from some of Australia’s largest organisations have met with the Australian Privacy Commissioner Timothy Pilgrim to discuss how to prevent data breaches and how to respond to one, if or when it occurs.

“The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) was notified of 56 data breaches in the last financial year, equivalent to a data breach a week. This is up from 44 in the previous year, an increase of 27 per cent,” Mr Pilgrim said.

Data breaches can occur in a multitude of ways, ranging from stolen laptops or portable storage devices, hacking or mistakenly providing information to the wrong person.

“Serious harm can befall people when the security of their personal information is compromised”, Mr Pilgrim said. “It is our view that whenever there is a real risk of serious harm, affected individuals should be notified.”

Data breach notification is not a mandatory obligation applying generally to government and business in Australia.  However, there is increased pressure on the Government to introduce laws to make it a general legal requirement as it is elsewhere — data breach notification is already a mandatory requirement in Europe, the UK and the United States.

“As legislative change is considered by the Government, the OAIC has updated a guide to assist agencies and organisations to respond to data breaches,” Australian Information Commissioner John McMillan said in launching the revised guidelines.

Data breach notification: A guide to handling personal information security breaches outlines four steps to consider when responding to a breach or suspected breach and also outlines preventative measures that should be taken as part of a comprehensive information security plan.

The Federal Government has added 23 new organisations to the Australian Apprenticeships Support Service providers fro the 2012-14 period.

Federal Minister for Skills, Senator Chris Evans, announced the expansion of the program after recent projections from Skills Australia show that Australia will need an additional 2.1 million skills qualified people in the workforce by 2015.

"It's vital that we maintain the momentum from our record investment in apprenticeships - a more skilled and adaptable workforce is critical to Australia's long-term economic success,” Senator Evans said.

Our reforms of the apprenticeship system will ensure the apprenticeship system can provide the skilled workers that Australia's new economy will need."

Across Australia, 23 organisations have accepted two-year contracts worth more than $400 million to deliver Australian Apprenticeships Support Services for apprentices and their employers, including job matching and centralised, nationally-consistent administration.

"These new contracts will better support both employers, to meet the skills needs of their business, and apprentices to complete a life changing qualification" Senator Evans said.

"The new support service providers will ensure apprentices, and the businesses taking them on, have the support they need to begin and complete their training.

The full list of participating organisations can be found here

The Federal Government has released its report of the demand driven university placement reform, with Minister for Tertiary Education, Senator Chris Evans, saying the Government’s work will allow for an unprecedented skills boom to meet increased demand for a variety of labour.

The Demand Driven System: Undergraduate Applications and Offers report details a boom in placements since the Federal Government introduced its demand driven placement reform, recording over 150,000 additional placements offered since the reform took effect.

The report found that 221,765 offers were made this year, an increase by 5.5 per cent compared with the same time last year.

The largest growth in university offers is being seen in health (10.2%), engineering (7.8%) and natural and physical sciences (7.0%).

"The Government set the ambitious target that by 2020, 40 per cent of all 25 to 34-year-olds will hold a bachelor's degree or above and lift the participation levels of disadvantaged students to 20 per cent of undergraduate enrolments,” Senator Evans said at the report’s launch.

"It is an economic imperative that we meet these targets. If we don't, we will consign ourselves to low economic growth and will not be able to compete in the future economy. This report shows we are well on our way to successfully fulfilling these goals."

Offers to applicants from low socioeconomic backgrounds have also shown the largest increase (5.8%) compared with offers to applicants from medium socioeconomic backgrounds (5.7%) and high socioeconomic backgrounds (4.9%).

The report can be found here

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) has published the results of the mass cervical screening program involving 3.6 million women throughout the country.

The Cervical screening in Australia 2009-2010 report provides information on the National Cervical Screening Program (NCSP), which aims to reduce the prevalence of cervical cancer.

The report shows that the detection of high-grade abnormalities remains high, detecting 9 such abnormalities per 1,000 women screened.

“This kind of early detection allows treatment before possible progression to cancer,” AIHW spokesperson Chris Sturrock said.

The latest figures available on cervical cancer incidence and deaths show that there were 637 new cases of cervical cancer diagnosed in Australia in 2008, and 131 women died from cervical cancer in 2007.

“The good news is that incidence and mortality rates have both halved since the NCSP was introduced in 1991, and both are at an historic low,” Ms Sturrock said.

“One area of concern is the incidence of cervical cancer in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women which is twice that of non-Indigenous women, with the mortality rate 5 times as high.”

The survey screened 57 per cent of Australian women in the 20-69 target age group, posting a decline from the previous 2-year reporting period 2007-2008, which recorded a participation rate of 59 per cent.

WorkSafe Victoria has announced a rural blitz of Victoria, with a particular interest in the Ballarat area.

WorkSafe will inspect about 200 Ballarat businesses as part of the agency’s Safe Towns campaign to check on health and safety compliance.

WorkSafe’s General Manager for Operations, Lisa Sturzenegger, said it was in everyone’s interest to address issues sooner rather than later.

“We find in many of our prosecutions that businesses admit they were aware of an issue, but failed to fix it. In many cases this has resulted in an injury, a conviction and a large fine,” she said.

“Not addressing health and safety matters can have devastating effects for workers and businesses. We urge businesses to stay on top of potential hazards, no matter how small or large they might be.”

Statistics show 3021 injuries were reported to WorkSafe from the Ballarat region over the past five financial years, with treatment and rehabilitation costs exceeding $61 million.

The Australian Government and a contingent of Australian mining companies have identified over $45 million in future business opportunities throughout Latin America.

Peter Beattie, the Government’s Resources Sector Supplier Envoy, recently travelled with chief executives and senior managers from 11 Australian mining suppliers to Chlie, Colombia and Peru.

"Australian resources sector suppliers will find real opportunities in South America. By doing their homework and using the services of Australian government representatives offshore, in particular in strong growth emerging markets, they can grow their business both in Australia and abroad,” Mr Beattie said.

"Australia enjoys a strong reputation in South America because Australian firms are innovative and we engage constructively in problem solving.”

Federal Minister for Industry and Innovation Greg Combet welcomed the finding, describing South America as a natural fit for Australian interests.

"More than $260 billion of investment in minerals exploration and development has been announced in Chile, Colombia and Peru for the next 5-10 years, this presents real opportunities for innovative and competitive Australian suppliers to expand their customer base internationally," Mr Combet said.

"Australia's reputation as an open and competitive market, and our suppliers' highly skilled and innovative workforce, give us an edge in the global marketplace and in particular strong growth emerging markets."

Australian mining interests will have a further opportunity to explore the Latin American market at the Latin America DownUnder conference to be held in Sydney, 22-23 May.

Construction of the $110 million offshore gas Marine Supply Base has begun in the Northern Territory.

“This Marine Supply Base will be Northern Australia’s first dedicated marine supply base, and will give Territory businesses the opportunity to service and supply offshore gas projects in the region,”  Territory Chief Minister Paul Henderson said.

“To put this massive project in perspective Darwin provides approximately $150 million in services and supplies per year to support the gas industry - with the help of this new Base, this figure is expected to increase to $420 million over the next 20 years.”

The base is being built by local company Macmahon and is expected to employ 1254 during construction and create 25 ongoing jobs directly and 170 indirectly.

Mr Henderson said the Marine Supply Base is expected to attract more offshore service companies to Darwin and is part of the Territory 2030 target to establish Darwin as a key centre for gas operations and maintenance. 

Works are expected to be completed by 2013, with services commencing immediately.

Woodside’s $14.9 billion Pluto Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Project has produced its first LNG.

The Minister for Resources and Energy, Martin Ferguson AM MP, said it is a momentous announcement for Woodside and its partners, but also for Australia.

“This project is very important to the energy industry and the national economy more broadly,” said Minister Ferguson.

“Woodside estimates that 15,000 Australian jobs have been created over the course of construction including a peak on site workforce of 4,000 and more than $7.6 billion has been pumped into the Australian economy.

“The project has faced difficult conditions, and I welcome the news that Pluto is now in production, with LNG ready to be shipped to customers in Japan.

"Once Pluto reaches full production Australia’s total LNG exports will increase from around 20 million tonnes per annum to 24.5 million tonnes per annum.” 

The Pluto LNG Project is located on the Burrup Peninsula, 10kms north-west of Karratha, WA. Train one will have production capacity of 4.3 million tonnes per annum. The facility is supported by an offshore platform connected to five subsea wells on the Pluto gas field and a 180km pipeline to the facility.

Woodside operate the Pluto LNG Project and hold 90 per cent ownership, with Tokyo Gas and Kansai Electric, two major customers, each owning five per cent.

Since late 2007, Woodside has worked with CO2 Australia to implement a $100 million carbon offset program, the largest commercial program in Australia dedicated to forest sink carbon plantings. The program has already seen 20 million trees planted, with seven million more to follow.

Woodside and their contractors have also worked with local communities to provide employment opportunities for Indigenous Australians. The Pluto project exceeded the goal of employing 150 Indigenous Australians during the construction stage of the project.

Australian gold producer reed Resources has secured a debt financing facility of up to $23 million for the working capital requirements of the Meekatharra Gold Project Joint Venture in Western Australia.

Reed has announced its current $40 million underwritten rights issue will fund the construction and commission costs, while the debt facility will finance the projects requirements, including further exploration and business development.

The key features of the facility are summarised as follows:

• Facility: A $20 million Revolving Credit Facility which allows Reed Resources to redraw principal amounts subject to certain conditions precedent and a $3m Performance Bond facility;
• Tenor: Approximately Two years.
• Hedging: A hedging facility which includes an Early Hedge Facility giving Reed the flexibility to buy put options prior to the Revolving Credit Facility being activated. The facility includes bought puts for first six months of production, then nominally 50,000 to 60,000 ounces in forward delivery contracts and the balance bought puts.

Managing Director Chris Reed said: “This is a great result for the Company. Support from Barclays, a leading global mining project finance provider, is a major vote of confidence in the Meekatharra Gold Project and its future production profile.

“We are currently refurbishing the existing plant and we remain on-track for gold production in the December quarter of this year. Whilst hedging is required under the facility, it represents less than 8% of our current Probable Reserves, and it enables us to remove 100% of the downside risk in the gold price. The facility is able to be increased and extended by the inclusion of agreed reserves to the current Stage 1 mine plan,” Mr Reed concluded.

Teachers in every Australian school will have a yearly performance assessment which will include classroom observation and evidence of student outcomes, under proposals released for consultation today. 

The draft Australian Teacher Performance and Development Framework, developed by the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL), proposes that teachers set performance goals every year and demonstrate how those goals have been met. 

School Education Minister Peter Garrett said the final framework will be implemented in Australian schools from 2013. 

“Teachers have one of the most important jobs in the country. It’s vital that our teachers have the opportunity to both demonstrate their skills and improve their classroom practice through regular and effective feedback, professional growth and development, and performance assessment, but until now this has not been consistently occurring in our schools,” he said. 

“The draft framework will provide the first national set of guidelines for performance assessments for the teaching profession. Teachers will have a clear understanding of what they will be expected to achieve every year, and a clear understanding of how their performance will be measured. 

“This will allow our many terrific teachers to demonstrate how well they are performing and the positive results they are producing, while also providing opportunities to improve their skills where needed.” 

Under the draft framework, every teacher will have a set of documented, measurable and specific goals for the year, which will be agreed with their school principal or a delegate. 

Teachers will be able to collect evidence that they are achieving their objectives. This could include improved student results; feedback from students, parents, and their peers or supervisor; and direct observation of their classroom teaching. 

Every teacher will receive a formal review of their performance each year by their principal or delegate, as well as regular informal and constructive feedback and support throughout the year. 

The Labor Government announced the creation of a National Children’s Commissioner within the Australian Human Rights Commission.

Attorney-General Nicola Roxon said that the new Commissioner will focus on promoting the rights, wellbeing and development of children and young people in Australia.

“For the first time, Australia will have a dedicated advocate focussed on the human rights of children and young people at the national level,” Ms Roxon said.

“The Children’s Commissioner will ensure the voices of children and young people are heard in the development of Commonwealth policies and programs.”

The Minister for Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs Jenny Macklin said establishing a Federal Children’s Commissioner was key action under the Government’s National Framework for Protecting Australia’s Children 2009-2020.

“We want every child to grow up safe, happy and well. The new Commissioner will represent the views of children and young people, particularly those most vulnerable, at the national level,” Ms Macklin said.

Minister for Community Services Julie Collins said children and young people need a national advocate to ensure their rights are reflected in national policies and programs.

“The National Children’s Commissioner will have a key role in advocating for the rights of children across Australia,” Ms Collins said.

"The national Commissioner will not duplicate but complement the work of states and territories, particularly the work of other commissioners and guardians.”

The Children’s Commissioner will take a broad advocacy role to promote public awareness of issues affecting children, conduct research and education programs, consult directly with children and representative organisations as well as monitor Commonwealth legislation, policies and programs that relate to children’s rights, wellbeing and development.

The South Australian Government has announced that mining of mineral sands is set to resume at Mindarie in South Australia’s Murray Mallee.

Speaking at the opening of the 11^th South Australia Resource and Energy Investment Conference, State Minister for Mineral Resources and Energy Tom Koutsantonis said that approval had been given to the new owners of Murray Zircon to resume mining near Karoonda.

The mineral sands mine has been under care and maintenance since 2009 after the previous operator Australian Zircon announced it was going into voluntary administration.

“Murray Zircon has worked closely with the community during the past year and has committed to a comprehensive technical program to complete rehabilitation of land disturbed by the former mining operations at Mindarie,” Mr Koutsantonis said.

Mr Koutsantonis said the approval of the restarting of works at Mindarie forms part of the State Government’s pro-mining PACE2020 policy package.

The National Prescribing Service (NPS) has urged the Federal Government to act on the growing “anti-biotic-resistance crisis” facing the Australian community. 

In her address to the National Press Club in Canberra, NPS Board Chair Dr Janette Randall described the growing, cross sector issue of antibiotic resistance as a pressing issues, saying it involves veterinary, agriculture and manufacturing sectors.

Industry and health researchers must be supported to invest in R&D and the development of new antibiotics.  New mechanisms to fund drug development and bring new antibiotics to market through innovative reimbursement models are urgently needed,” Dr Randall said.

“We need to take action at all levels – individuals, health professionals, communities, media, industry and government. We must act strongly, and we must act now.”

Dr Randall warned that without urgent and intelligent action to curb growing antibiotic resistance, we may face a world without effective treatment, where bacteria are smarter, more virulent and cause nastier and more complex infections.

“Data shows that the timeline between a new antibiotic becoming available and the development of resistance to that antibiotic is getting shorter and shorter,” Dr Randall warned.

“We are facing a world where infections from something as simple as a scratch have the potential to kill and where common illnesses once again become serious or untreatable and carry a higher risk of complications and death.”

Dr Randall’s speech coincides with the launch of an NPS consumer campaign aimed at addressing the misuse and overuse of antibiotics in Australia.

“We are asking all Australians to become resistance fighters and join the fight against antibiotic resistance and we are supporting this campaign with other tools and resources to help change attitudes and behaviours towards antibiotic use,” Dr Randall said.  

“We have an ambitious goal to reduce antibiotic prescribing by 25% in five years. This will bring Australia in line with the OECD average of defined daily dose of antibiotics per capita/per day and give us a real chance to reduce the incidence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in the Australian community.

“To help us achieve this, we are working with GPs, pharmacists, nurses and other health professionals to promote the use of best-practice guidelines for infections, encourage symptomatic management of colds and flu, and to facilitate better patient conversations when discussing antibiotic resistance and the correct use of antibiotics,” said Dr Randall.

A full copy of Dr Janette Randall’s speech is available via the NPS website.

A research paper published by the NSW Minerals Council has found that addressing growing mental illness issues is a crucial priority for the sector.

The NSW Minerals Council launched the paper at the 2012 Occupational Health and Safety Conference, which recommends a comprehensive industry-wide approach to tackling growing mental health and illness issues, including the development of a ‘Roadmap for Mental Health’.

NSW Minerals Council CEO Stephen Galilee said that mining companies were doing a good job of managing mental health at an individual level and that it is now a good time to consider a collaborative, industry-wide effort.

“We lead the way on tackling mental health challenges, providing drug and alcohol advice, running stress management workshops and mental awareness sessions, and supporting men's sheds. We have the policies in place but we need to consider ways to link them into a wider strategy,” Mr Galilee said.

The 43 page Mental Health and the NSW Minerals Industry, prepared by the University of Newcastle and the Hunter Institute of Mental Health, through Newcastle Innovation, reveals the impact of mental health on mining:

• An estimated average of between 8,000 to 10,000 employees experienced a common mental health illness like anxiety, depression or substance abuse over a 12 month period
• It is estimated that people from across all mining employment categories are affected equally, from managers and professionals through to machinery operators and drivers
• Estimated costs to the industry including lowered productivity are between $320 million to $450 million per year or around $300,000 to $400,000 for an average mine of 170 people.

“There is no single solution to mental health. It requires a strategic and comprehensive approach. Like any football club or netball squad, we need to tackle this challenge together as a team. It's only then that we will keep kicking goals in our management of mental health,” Mr Galilee said.

John Holland has been fined the maximum of $242,000 after a worker fell to their death at BHP Biliton’s Mt Whaleback mine 2 years ago.

The Federal Court ruled that BHP Biliton had failed to adhere to the health and safety regulations which caused Wayne Moore, 45, to step on an unsecured sheet of grid mesh and fall 10 meters to their death in 2009.

Comcare, the federal safety regulator who prosecuted John Holland, also insisted the company enforce better safety practices in their operations across Australia.

General manager Neil Quarmby said, Employers need to look more closely at near misses," he said.

"Comcare inspectors found there had been two incidents involving unsecured grid mesh at this workplace in the weeks leading up to the fatality.”

Prolonged sitting is an independent risk factor for poor health and early death in workers.

Research from the University of Sydney found that people who sit for 11 hours or more a day are 40 per cent more likely to die within three years than those who sit for less than four hours. Those who sit for between eight hours and 11 hours a day are 15 per cent more likely to die. This was after taking into account the participants’ physical activity, weight and health status.

Working adults spend more time at work—approximately one third of their day—than in any other setting. According to Medibank’s publication Stand Up Australia, Sedentary behaviour in workers, office workers spend an average of 76 per cent of their day sitting.

Workplace design and management and working conditions can have a significant effect on the health of workers. Employers can be presented with productivity losses due to workers with chronic disease. These include unplanned absences, reduced workplace effectiveness, workers’ compensation costs and negative impacts on work quality or customer service. The relationship between work and health is therefore an important one.

Rail giant QR National has announced it is evaluating an independent, multi-party railway to connect major iron ore mines in the East Pilbara to Port Hedland.

The company announced the possibility of a standard-gauge railway to be designed as a staged development to be progressively expanded to meet shipping allocations of customers, with operation possibly starting as early as 2015.

"QR National believes the Pilbara offers one of our Company’s most outstanding growth opportunities where we can leverage existing capability in heavy-haul rail," said QR National Executive Vice President Strategy and Business Development, Ken Lewsey.

"We’ve been constructing and operating multi-user heavy-haul railways in Queensland’s coalfields for decades. This coal network has current capacity for 250 million tonnes per annum, potentially growing to 300 mtpa by 2015.

"This capability is readily transferrable to the Pilbara where a number of independent miners are seeking rail transport solutions.

"The value of an independent railway is that we can achieve the economies of scale by aggregating the tonnages of multiple parties, as well as delivering efficiency gains across a co-ordinated supply chain."

QR National has signed an Agreement with Atlas Iron to jointly study a proposal to service iron ore deposits of Atlas and other miners in the first stage of the proposed infrastructure development.